To work your way up to become a Master Sommelier, if you’re a woman you need to have sex with old male Masters. That’s the gist of a disturbing article in The New York Times in which a number of women candidates for Master Sommelier discuss sexual abuse and rape in candid fashion.
Others described being on the receiving end of sexual innuendo and unwanted touching. At least one major distributor — Republic National Distribution Corp. — is mentioned in the article.
The result of the encounters is that a number of women abandon pursuit of the Master Sommelier certification.